Contents

Lindelof was born in Teaneck, New Jersey, the son of Susan Klausner, a teacher, and David Lindelof, a bank manager.[3][4] He attended Teaneck High School, a school whose diverse student body he credits with expanding his horizons as a writer.[5] His mother is Jewish and his father was of Scandinavian descent.[6] Lindelof celebrated his bar mitzvah in Teaneck, where he attended synagogue for the Sabbath; he has stated, "I was a Jewish white kid growing up in Teaneck, but at the same time, I had African and Filipino and Asian friends and to have that experience all through high school while getting an awesome education was wonderful."[7] Lindelof attended film school at New York University, performing briefly in the band Petting Zoo, and moved to Los Angeles after graduating.

An early boost to his writing career came in 1999, when he was selected as a semifinalist for a Nicholl Fellowship for his screenplay Perfectionists.[8] Before this, he worked on reviewing scripts at Paramount, Fox, and Alan Ladd studios.

Lindelof married Heidi Mary Fugeman in 2005; the couple have one child.

Lindelof has been the subject of controversy over his various tweets on his Twitter account for being outspoken on his reactions to various movies like The Dark Knight Rises[11] and defending the mixed to negative response to the ending of the show Lost. Lindelof deleted his Twitter account on October 14, the same day as a massively important plotpoint on his new HBO show, The Leftovers. Lindelof stopped his final tweet in mid-sentence leaving his followers to wonder in regards to the significance. Lindelof's final tweet read, “After much thought and deliberation, I’ve decided t.” Lindelof later said that he felt as though his time on Twitter was consuming him in a negative fashion and that he has no intentions of returning to the site.[12]

Lindelof is the writer of the comic book miniseries Ultimate Wolverine vs. Hulk for Marvel Comics, which takes place in the Ultimate Marvel universe and began publication in January 2006. Despite being a six-issue miniseries, production was suspended after the second issue in February 2006 due to Lindelof's heavy workload elsewhere; however, the last of the scripts were submitted to Marvel in 2008 and the series resumed publication in March 2009. Lindelof wrote a Rip Hunter story for Time Warp No. 1 (May 2013) which was drawn by Jeff Lemire and published by Vertigo.[13][14]

Lost received endless praise for its unique brand of storytelling and strong characters. The first two seasons of the show were ratings juggernauts and the show never fell out of the top 30 throughout its six seasons on the air. Lindelof and co-show-runner Carlton Cuse have been heralded as two of the first to truly embrace the changing times with things such as their daily podcast and being active in the fan community. A majority of the six seasons were met with critical praise, however both Lindelof and Cuse were not afraid to address critiques on the show be it through the podcast or other forms of media. However, Lindelof said in late 2013 that he would no longer be addressing those displeased with the way the show ended stating, "And what do I do? I jump at the opportunity to acknowledge how many people were dissatisfied with how it ended. I try to be self-deprecating and witty when I do this, but that’s an elaborate (or obvious?) defense mechanism to let people know I’m fully aware of the elephant in the room and I’m perfectly fine with it sitting down on my face and shitting all over me... And here’s my part: I will finally stop talking about it. I’m not doing this because I feel entitled or above it — I’m doing it because I accept that I will not change hearts nor minds. I will not convince you they weren’t dead the whole time, nor resent you for believing they were despite my infinite declarations otherwise.” [20]

It was believed that after the conclusion of Lost, Lindelof and J. J. Abrams would write and produce a film adaptation of Stephen King's The Dark Tower, but Lindelof squelched this notion in a late 2000s USA Today, commenting, "After working six years on Lost, the last thing I want to do is spend the next seven years adapting one of my favorite books of all time. I'm such a massive Stephen King fan that I'm terrified of screwing it up. I'd do anything to see those movies written by someone else. My guess is they will get made because they're so incredible. But not by me."[21]

In December 2008, Lindelof was the featured guest on an episode of The Write Environment, a public television series featuring in-depth, candid one-on-one interviews with some of TV's most prolific and well-known series creator/writers. Other notable writers to appear on the series are Joss Whedon and Tim Kring. The interview is also available on DVD.

He is the showrunner for the TV series The Leftovers; HBO ordered a 10 episode first season and has renewed the program for a season 2.[22]

^Rohan, Virginia. "North Jersey simply not 'Lost'". The Record, February 5, 2007. "Lindelof got into the production end of television while at Teaneck High School, where he worked on a start-up TV news program...." Quote: "What was cool about growing up in New Jersey, especially Bergen County, is it was very diverse. ... I literally went to high school with people of all different races and ethnicities and backgrounds. That broadened my horizons as a writer. It made me interested in other people's stories."

^Siegler, Bonnie. "'Lost' and found", American Jewish Life magazine, February / March 2008. Accessed August 31, 2011. "He and his family attended the local synagogue on weekends and a 13-year-old Damon had his bar mitzvah in Teaneck.... But he does say his childhood and Jewish background have added to who he is today. "The area was culturally diverse and that is one of the reasons I loved it. I didn't have the experience of some other people I've met who say they were 15 before they saw someone who wasn't white or that they hadn't met a Jewish person yet. The idea was that I was a Jewish white kid growing up in Teaneck, but at the same time, I had black and Filipino and Asian friends and to have that experience all through high school while getting an awesome education was wonderful....'"